Wednesday, October 19, 2011

"Shadow Group"'s Ads Hit the Airwaves

I did a story about Independent Source PAC's radio ad campaign which lambaste Gov. Susana Martinez's administration on three separate issues.

ISP is a liberal political action committee headed by Michael Corwin, an Albuquerque private detective who frequently works opposition research for various Democratic candidates.

The ads deal with three cases ISP calls conflicts of interest in the administration: Chief of Staff Keith Gardner's wife getting hired at the Public Education Department; State Personnel Board Chairman Paul Yarborough being vice president of an Albuquerque law firm that has state contracts amounting to more than $500,000; and Patty Matthews, the PED's charter-school czar coming from a lawfirm that represents charter schools.

The Governor's Office declined comment except to say the ads "appear to be backed by a shadow group intent on opposing education reform and defending the status quo in New Mexico's education system, which has failed to adequately prepare our kids to read and learn."